Little Falls transcript. [volume] (Little Falls, Morrison County, Minn.) 1876-1894, 1887-04-01
BACK FROM THE RIVIERA,


. D = - Is
Tales Told b Americans Who were ghaksa bytAs
3 sEartbqnsks--A Day Of Fsstiyity Succeeded 81 6
Night Of Terror--A Midnight Scene n :
Crowded Hstel at Nice 6 s@
From the New York World. s ...3 sss IS
The Gascogne OF the Compagnie Gem
erale Transatlantique reached her pier
on the North river q few days ago,
having on the first persons to reach
this country who had witnessed the
terrible earthquake Of the Riviera.
They were Charles j.. Burke and M.
Tone OF Rochester, N. Y. These gentle.
men had been travelling in Europe
and were in Nice on Ash
Wednesday morning, when the south
ern coast Of Europe was shaken up.
All OF the way across on the steamer
the gentlemen had been requested to
tell and retell the experience Of that
morning, and when a: World reporter
boarded the steamer and asked them
to tell him about it he was welcomed
with, II thought you would be here"
and cheerful promise to tell the tale
as it appeared to them.
'"The great carnival of Nice had Just
ended" sad Mr.. Tone, ''and the last
day had been one round ofcontinuous
hilarity. There were hundreds OF
masked women, the gay pageant, the
battle of flowers; and in the evening I
had attended the carnival ball, at
which there were thousands ofpersons
present. We were stopping at the
Grand hotel, and it was rather early
when we got home. was too excited
with the days gayety to sleep, and
was lying down reading book. 1t
was about 6 o'clock when the earth
quake began, and can ne5er learn to
express my feelings. It was the
strangest thing ever knew, although
! had been through one before in
California. KNEW it was an earth
quake at once, and jumped up and
made for the door togo to Mr.. Burke's
room, which was just across the hall
from mine, but somehow the furniture
OF the room went flying about as
though placed loosely in the cabin OF
a steamer during a heavy gale, and
for while was rushing about the
room trying to catch my bed. Final
ly got out in the hall and went
across to my friends room, but the
door was locked and I called to him
to come out. Just then a young lady
rushed up to me with but a. single gar
ment on, having in her hand large
bird cage carefully covered with
shawl. oh, sir, what shall do" she
said to me, and suggested she should
60 and put some clothes on. But she
didn't, for just then the second shock
came and she made g. rush for the
street and I followed her. The halls
were filled with women, men and chill
dren, the majority of whom did not
wait to put on any extra clothing,
but ran for the public squares to be
out OF the road of any falling build.
ings:
ut was the most terrible, most fear
Installing sight ever witnessed. Al
though the men tried, even in their in
tense excitement, to show some re-
spect to the women and children, it
was q time when everybody looked
out for himself, for it was expected
every moment that the house would
fall down. shall never forget it, and
don care if I never see Italy again.
Following as it did the merry carni-
val, it had the strongest effect on the
merry-makers of yesterday. All of the
jests and carousals were forgotten,
and all, or nearly all, tried to pray"
Mr.. Burke had in his charge during
the passage six sisters of charity, and
after he had seen them away to their
destinations he told the reporter the
following story OF his experiences with
the earthquake: II was in bed and
asleep when I was awakened by feel
ing myself swinging, as 1t were, about
twenty feet to and fro. The furniture
in the room was banging about and
there was q low, omnous roar.
/ jumped up quickly and dressed. I
had just flushed my hasty toilet
when the second shock came and I
ran out into the hall, leaving every
thing behind me except what I wore.
The hall was actually filled with men
and women running up and down and
crying out in the most distressing
manner. The great hotel continued
to rock like cradle, and with each
vibration the cries increased and wom-
en- tainted on all sides. There were
husbands calling their wives and
wives their husbands. Children were
running about and shrieking for their
parents. All had jumped out OF bed
and the scene was worse than one
could imagine. Pandemonium was
nothing to it, and the coolest among
us did not know what to do until all
were finally seized with the desire to
get to the street, and then there was
a crush. Ihave no idea of how long this
lasted. Time was lost to me. It might
have been two minutes or two hours.
All can remember is that the whole
system seemed demoralized and I was
in a whirl that can only be compared
to a wild, horrible dream. It was
something frightful. How soon we
reached the street or how I cannot
tell. know we got there and found
all of the squares filled with people
nearly all in dishabille. There were
fair and delicate women and children
barefooted, and with little or nothing
around them. All were running around
to try and find their friends, and when
a group were collected they stood or
knelt, momentarily expecting another
shock. There were 10000 people
thus congregated in the squares.
Quiet was gradually restored, and
then on the scene the sun arose. It
was most perfect morning, and when
the warm rays OF the sun tinged the
tops of tho hills and the quaint old
buildings, it looked down on the
strangest scene I think it ever saw.
No one dared to stir from the place,
and could not be hired to 60 into the
houses for any sum of money, the early
morning was spent by the people with